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    Kum's Cafe

    4.6 (106 reviews)
    Closed Closed

    Kum's Cafe Photos

    KUM'S CAFE ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Casual
    Quiet
    Dogs allowed
    Good for groups

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    Recommended Reviews - Kum's Cafe

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    Reviews With Photos

    Mary V.

    Guys, this is the best Korean spot in Louisville. I love the woman running the restaurant. She's so sweet. And she remembers us now because we come so often. Seriously, when I crave Korean food this spot satiates my cravings. Every time we're there I'm saddened by the fact that one day this lovely couple will retire (which I'll be so happy for them), but I'll lose and miss this place so much!!! This is truly a gem. Louisvillians have no idea what they have. In my most recent visit, we had the pa jun, danjang jigea, and grilled mackerel. The pa jun was delicious as always. The danjang jigea did not have the jalepeno as advertised on the menu, but it was still good and it had zucchini -- I'm assuming they use what they have. That's fine with me. The grilled mackerel was not as it was in Korea but it was meatier and juicier -- less salty than the version we had in Andong, Korea. There are a lot of bones so be aware! I'll be looking forward to my next visit.

    Entrance
    Saphace A.

    I came on a Friday for lunch past 2 and there were a few others dining in. The parking lot is a little weird since it's off a busy street. But you can exit behind the building to hit the traffic light. There are two rooms to sit in. They also had a TV on. We shared kim bap. It's kind of like sushi. Yum! My sister and I both got the dol soat be bim bop. It was very filling. And very delicious! My friend got the gom tong, which was an orange soup with beef. She loved it! It was very good! She had to take the rest home since it was a lot! The lady who served us was super nice and attentive. I'm thinking it's a family-owned restaurant. I hope this place sticks around!

    Waiting for the meats.
    Brad G.

    Arirang - A++. Korean bbq perfection! I'm a fan! I've worked a short walk from this place for a long while now. The only thing I had ever tried was the Krispy Krunchy chicken side when someone would bring the chicken back to work and offer a piece. It was my friend Xiaolu's birthday, and she wanted Korean bbq. The original place for the 5 of us to visit was Lee's but once arriving in the parking lot, there was much debate and fighting before Xiaolu convinced everyone she wanted to go here instead. Since it was her birthday, we went without strong opposition. I do think it was a perfect choice. Koreana 2 is also close too and I have visited Koreana numerous times for lunch because it's so easy to get in and out of(but never for Korean bbq). With Kum's/Arirang, this might be my Korean bbq destination. When pulling into the parking lot here, you'll definitely think you're in the wrong spot. It's kind of in a weird spot but they also have parking in the back. It was later in the evening so we weren't greeted right away but we quickly found a grill tabletop and took a seat. The lady came soon enough. From this moment forward, anytime bbq is mentioned, I want nothing less than Korean bbq. There's nothing like it and it's 350 million times better than anything considered American bbq. We went with all 5 things on the Korean bbq menu (Garl Bi - beef short ribs. Bul Go Gi - Thin sliced ribeye. Dok Gui - Chicken chunks. Dea Ji Gui - Pork chunks. Som Yup Sarl - Fatty slices of pork belly meat). It comes with plenty of banchan(side dishes). We also decided to split a bowl of bibimbap amongst the 5 of us(the portion was enough for all 5 of us). Korean bbq is unique because the food is cooked in front of you in/on the tabletop. Out of all the meats, the thin-sliced ribeye, pork chunks, and pork belly meat were the best. The beef short ribs were good but thicker cuts of meat(steak in particular) aren't a favorite of mine. I could've done without the chicken... it just wasn't that good in my opinion. Most of the meat is cooked in some type of sauce so it's tough to tell when it's finished. That's something to keep in my mind when eating here. The beef and steak is one thing because you can eat meat from varying shades of pink to well done. If you want the meat more on the medium-medium well side, you'll need to speak up. On the other end of the spectrum, some of the meats were left not done but pulled out of the grill with the indication that they were finished. We had to place those meats back on the grill. That might've influenced my disdain towards the chicken. The bibimbap was also good. I'm not sure if we needed it with all of the meat and sides. We were all stuffed by the time we finished. The portions are large so unless you're with a larger group, expect leftovers if you order all the meats... unless you're just ready to eat; Then go crazy with yourself. I've been including this in my reviews where it's a typical group experience and this place is no different. If you need someone else to add to your Korean bbq group for a communal food outing... send me a message. This place is delicious!

    Mon Doo Bul Go Gi
    India C.

    Had a brother/sister lunch here. This place is amazing. Quite literally hole in the wall with the owners manning the floor and the kitchen. Don't expect to fully understand the lady working if you bc her English is broken...(that's how you know the food is going to be amazing, by the way. We ended up starting with Mandu and both going for the bulgogi beef which included rice and banchan. The pickled sides are to die for and we couldn't even finish it all.

    Ban Chan. This comes with the gal bi, and comes with other items.
    Sherman B.

    My family loves Korean food! Kum's Cafe & Arirang fills the void. We stick with the staples - Gal Bi (beef ribs) and Jham Bong (spicy seafood soup). They also have Cajun and fried chicken, but we haven't veered from the Korean menu, so we don't know if it's as good as the Korean faire.

    Octopus
    Shelby Z.

    Korean is not an ethnic food group that I am very familiar with. Not that I am not interested, I just never knew where to go. Thankfully a friend suggested Kum's, and it turned out to be a great first experience. I kind of wanted to go balls to the wall, so I went with the octopus dish. It was perfect for me, because it was spicy, flavorful, and is seafood. They have such a big menu, and while it can be a little overwhelming, there's bound to be something for everyone. The portion sizes are also very generous!

    Stella W.

    Great little local gem! It's a mom and pops Korean restaurant located in South Louisville. It's serving up mostly authentic Korean dishes. I was blown away by the selections of Banchan (those small little dishes!). I've never tried some of those and I've had my fair share of Korean food. The marinated eggplants and fishcakes are amazing! The entree Spicy Seafood Noodle is also very flavorful and the portion is great, with a lot of seafood. The business can be a bit slow and the ambiance is very vintage and home-y.

    Exterior View
    John H.

    Inexpensive Korean option in the area. Went for lunch with a group from work. Interesting place as it is both a sit down Korean place on one side of the restaurant as well as a take out fried chicken place on the other side. Ordered the Dol Sot Bibimbap (hot stone pot) for $10. Came with the traditional side dishes. It checked all the boxes, but the Bibimbap and the sides seemed to be lacking in flavor - even the spicy kimchi was disappointing. For the price, it's hard to complain. But I'd rather pay more and visit other options in the area.

    Seafood soontofu soup
    Kelly W.

    Friends and I stopped by this gem during a roadtrip craving some Korean food and also wanting to support local business. We all thought it was unique that this place offered Korean food AND fried chicken The fried chicken was FRESHLY FRIED. Worth a try We ordered the soon tofu seafood soup, galbi tang, Kimbop, and bibimbop. All truly surprising tasty especially for Louisville (we are from Chicago where there's a larger Asian population). The owner was very kind and made sure to refill our lovely banchans whenever she got a chance. Please consider stopping here and support your local business!

    Nicole E.

    Meant to go to Koreana 2, not far from here, but they were closed on Monday despite or showing it was open on Yelp. Sat down on the dining side away from the crunchy chicken counter. Was greeted by a warm Korean ajumma. Ordered a veggie Kimbap, 2 dolsot tofu bibimbaps. I was hungry and craving some Korean food. Looks like they are known for their crispy and crunchy chicken too. Was a bit apprehensive at first since there were no Korean customers but luckily a Korean mother and daughter walked in shortly after we put in an order. The owners are friendly, attentive, warm and welcoming to everyone. Kudos to them for treating their customers so warmly. The kimbap was yummy, would have been better with sriracha though. We used the gojuchang for a little added flavor. My Korean craving was well satiated at least. There was about 6 banchans or side dishes with our meal. The fish cake was a bit rubbery, over cooked and too salty. The cucumbers were too big for easy banchan consumption. The kimchi was decent, went with the dolsot but didn't have a ton of flavor on their own. The braised potatoes were good, not too sweet. The radish kimchi wasn't bad either. The chewy cucumber or spicy veggie was not my thing, was chewy and I couldn't tell what veggie I was consuming. The mother next to us asked how our food was and I told her it was good.

    Jom Paong
    Bree P.

    every time i eat here, i crave it even more. the food and customer service is wonderful. the prices are the cherry on top. i've loved every dish i've tried. the dumpling soup comes with beef/beef broth but i don't eat red meat so the sweet lady made a veggie version :)

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    1 year ago

    The food and service are both wonderful and the atmosphere is cozy. Good for a casual lunch or family dinner.

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    9 months ago

    ONG! The best Kim Bop ever! Service was fast food was fresh! All was delicious! I am making this my go to place for Korean!

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    1 year ago

    Great food and service! Nice owners. Highly recommend and will go again. Would like to try Korean bbq next.

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    Nami Modern Korean Steakhouse - Front dining area

    Nami Modern Korean Steakhouse

    4.2(173 reviews)
    5.2 miButchertown
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    Nami, what can I say. We had a very unique dining experience. It was a very cool place to eat(dress…read morecasual). We headed upstairs to the 2nd floor and were seated. From there it was like dining in the royal palace. The service we received was excellent. The meal pace was perfect. The quality of the appetizers and entrées was top notch. We even received a table visit for Chef Lee. We never got to try the grill tables. I don't know why they had to close.

    When Nami first opened, was so excited to go, but you couldn't get a spot. Somehow it fell off my…read moreradar. When it came across my Yelp 'surprise me' results, I was yes! Let's go! The results were mixed. We did the grill table and had appetizers. The apps were AMAZING! The pot stickers, the salad, the spicy edamame, all yum. The meat for the grill was basted in a wonderful marinade and you had a choice of having the kitchen grill it or doing so at your table. We chose to do it ourselves. The waitress brought us scissors with the meat...! The cuts were really too thick and/or wide and I was wondering why the kitchen would send them out so we would still have to cut raw meat with scissors at the table? Also, the only veggies that came with the meal were chunks of green peppers and a few rings of onions. We had asked about more but those were it. The dessert was shaved something in coconut milk. Not very memorable. They did hold the dairy for our lactose free person so maybe that would have made a difference? Because the apps were so good I'll go back and try their other items, but probably not the grill table.

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    Korean grill booth

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    Koreana 3 - Korean BBQ Special

    Koreana 3

    3.9(180 reviews)
    0.9 mi
    $$

    The food was great we did the grill. Our waitress was definitely in hover mode. We laughed about…read moreit, but she was very involved in our meal. Usually when they bring the check they leave and come back not stand over you mad dogging you as you struggle to count. I kept hearing "you pay, you pay now and you leave!" I asked for more rice three times to no answer finally she snapped at me "you get only one rice!" I said I'll pay for more I understand it cost money. I felt like winging 50 cents at her for a cup of rice. We had appetizers that did not require utensils or chop sticks. We finished them and she tried to take the chop sticks saying "oh you no use chop sticks" and it was like she didn't want to give them back. We cooked the last meat on the little table top gas grill that is a camping stove that runs off of a bottle. She turned off the flame and admonished us "you're done cooking turn of stove" It makes you wonder if they're pinching Pennie's at your table what are they doing in the back

    I came here to celebrate my birthday with Bulgogi. I ended up having bibimbap instead and was very…read morehappy with it. There was the option of Korean barbecue and while cooking at the table appeals to some I am afraid that I'll do something clumsy; hurting myself and others. I have not been to Korea. I have no idea what authentic looks like. This was what having a meal at my Korean friend's houses is like and I really enjoyed it. Most of the patrons were not white or speaking English which is always signifies to me AND as a therapist I don't want to overhear your conversations. The food arrived quickly and was exactly as described. Everyone in our group enjoyed themselves. I am looking forward to eating there again (if I see another birthday)

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    Koreana 3 - Updated menu

    Updated menu

    Koreana 3
    Koreana 3 - Stone pot bibimbap

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    Stone pot bibimbap

    Top 1 Korean BBQ & Hotpot - Garlic shrimp

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    4.0(48 reviews)
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    I had a fantastic time at Top 1 Korean BBQ and Hotpot and would recommend you try this gem out for…read moreyourself! You can either order all you care to eat hotpot - or Korean BBQ - or both! For what felt like a steal. My party and I chose the hotpot-only option. This included picking your base broth and then being able to add different seasonings, sauces, and of course protein and vegetable ingredients along the way. The staff was attentive and so generous with portions. They were urging us to try new things and checked on how we were doing often. We had a small party of two but the restaurant space is ready to handle large parties as well. They have two separate sections of BBQ / hotpot tables, a bar area, kimchi bar, and sauces bar, not to mention ice cream and dessert treats if you can possibly eat more after your meal. This restaurant is as much about the experience as it is about the meal itself. Now that I know the layout I'll bring a larger party next time, it was good fun and a great value for the money.

    My husband and I came here because he had been wanting to try it for a while and we will definitely…read morebe back. We liked the vibe of the bar area/back room. It had colored lights, TVs and good music playing. The food was a good deal for all you can eat. All of the meat was delicious, we especially liked the short ribs and bulgogi. The soup was also tasty and perfect for a cold evening. Also have ice creams and pastries included for dessert. Service was wonderful as well!

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    Top 1 Korean BBQ & Hotpot - Interior

    Interior

    Top 1 Korean BBQ & Hotpot
    Top 1 Korean BBQ & Hotpot - Left side dinning room

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    Left side dinning room

    Kum's Cafe - korean - Updated May 2026

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